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Henry VIII's Foreign Policy - Coggle Diagram
Henry VIII's Foreign Policy
Spain and Holy Roman Empire
election of Charles V to the post of Holy Roman Emperor concerned French and English, leading to Field of the Cloth of Gold
conflict arose between Charles and Francis after 1520 so in August 1521 Wolsey negotiated Treaty of Bruges with Charles, improving relations with the Pope and involving a marriage alliance between Charles and Henry's daughter Mary
the emperor crushingly defeated France in Battle of Pavia 1525 so Henry suggested a joint invasion of northern France to achieve territorial gains, showing his lack of strategic awareness as he would not agree
this lost Wolsey his domestic prestige and Henry backed down, gaining further resentment for Charles when he repudiated his marriage contract with Princess Mary
Wolsey sought to pressurise the emperor by imposing a trade embargo with Burgundian lands, but Charles' retaliation reacted widespread unemployment and social problems in England, so he had to back down
Charles V's strength
shown in his victory over French at Battle of Landriano 1529
seen in his dominance over the Pope, such as in Peace of Cambrai 1529
ensured that Henry's attempts to solve his marital issues by diplomatic means were doomed for failure - issues blamed on Wolsey resulting in his fall from power in 1529
death of Catherine of Aragon and execution of Anne Boleyn in 1536 opened up the possibility of a renewed alliance with the emperor
Henry was used by Maximilian and Ferdinand of Aragon after the Holy League, so when he sent an army of 10,000 men under Marquis of Dorset into France and achieved nothing, Ferdinand used this as a diversionary tactic while conquering Navarre
Ferdinand of Aragon died in 1516 leaving his grandson Charles V on the throne, who sought an alliance with the French
the towns captured by Henry in the Battle of Spurs in 1513 were on the Burgundian/French border so it was Maximilian who gained strategically from their capture, not England as it was 160km from Calais
Ireland
in the first part of the reign, English authorities remained in control of the Pale, Earl of Kildare (Gerald Fitzgerald) was dominant Irish nobleman
he played a double game of being an English courtier and servant of Crown whilst also most powerful Gaelic chief
however, this was difficult to sustain, especially after his relationship with Henry broke down, despite Henry needing him to govern Ireland
dismissal of Kildare 1534 led to major rebellion led by Thomas Fitzgerald, his son, that was suppressed with major difficulty and expense
attempt to refashion Irish government in 1534 by bringing it directly under English control, requiring English-born deputy supported by substantial military presence failed and drained Crown's resources
Gaelic lords O'Neill and O'Donnell invaded the Pale in 1539 but the government regained control and tried to pacify Ireland by establishing it as separate kingdom in 1541, imposing English law and creating counties out of Gaelic lordships
Gaelic lords therefore received peerage titles and Irish people were entitled to same legal protections and English
government lacked resources to follow through on the reforms, there was no Irish loyalty to the Crown and after 1534 relations became more complex due to religious differences emerging
Scotland
King James IV crossed the border with a considerable force in 1513 but was defeated by smaller army put together and led by Earl of Surrey and Catherine of Aragon in the Battle of Flodden in September, securing the border
James IV was killed, along with much Scottish nobility, leaving infant James V on the throne
however, Henry failed to build on that advantage given, partly due to the lack of revenue to continue warlike policy
due to the 'auld alliance' between Scotland and France, when England and France clashed, Anglo-Scottish tension increased
England became isolated due to the Treaty of Cambrai between Charles V, Emperor Maximilian and Francis I
Francis then could undermine Anglo-Scottish relations with the Duke of Albany, a member of French nobility and heir presumptive to the Scottish throne
he consolidated his position by becoming regent to the Scottish throne, alarming Henry and Wolsey
threat was minimised due to poisonous divisions among Scottish nobility but Henry showed himself as incapable of exploiting divisions and weaknesses in Scotland
the immediate aftermath of the Treaty of London in 1518 brought peace between France and England, so they agreed to keep albany out of Scotland, ensuring more peaceable relations on the Anglo-Scottish border
Henry's invasion in 1542 was met with immediate military success at the Battle of Solway Moss and the death of James V shortly after left infant Mary on the throne
this was supported by the Scottish regent, Earl of Arran, but the English ambassador in Edinburgh, Sir Sadler, reported widespread suspicion of English intentions
Henry failed to heed this warning
they were formally betrothed in the Treaty of Greenwich 1543 but Arran deserted the cause and Scottish Parliament refused to ratify the treaty
Henry then sent Earl of Hertford to raid Edinburgh, Leith and St Andrews, with no thought to strategic objectives and simply further antagonising the Scots
Henry used diplomatic pressure known as the 'rough wooing', seeking to marry Prince Edward to Mary, Queen of Scots
the Scottish defeated England in the battle of Ancrum Moor in 1545
France
councillors left from Henry VII renewed Treaty of Etaples in 1510
Henry simultaneously formed Holy League with Spain, the Holy Roman Empire, Venice and the Papacy in an anti-French alliance
Battle of Spurs in 1513 was won and led by Henry, capturing the towns of Therouanne and Tourney in what was claimed in propaganda to be a stunning victory while in reality more of a skirmish and Tournai was sold back
by end of 1514 Henry has ran out of money to continue wars so sought peace via marriage of his sister Mary to French King Louis XII
the marriage was short-lived, beginning 9th October 1514 and ending upon his death 1st Jan 1515, followed by Mary's marriage to Duke of Suffolk 2 months later
1515 death of Louis XII left Francis I on the throne so Henry sought an alliance with Ferdinand, seeing the charismatic young Francis as a rival
Treaty of Cambrai 1517 between Charles V (new Spanish King), Maximilian and Francis I left England isolated
this provided trading opportunities and incomes from bishopric until Tournai was eventually sold back - for less than Henry paid for defences repairs and he lost the renegotiated French pension until Wolsey recovered it in 1514
Treaty of London 1518 originated as peace negotiations between England and France, prompted by Pope Leo X who wanted united front against Ottoman Turks and led by Wolsey, but widened into a 'treaty of perpetual peace' agreed by France, Spain, Holy Roman Empire and England
future conflicts showed it to be meaningless but in the immediate aftermath was successful as England returned Tournai to France and the French agreed to pay a pension to compensate for the loss
good relations were reinforced by the diplomatic encounter of the Field of the Cloth of Gold in June 1920
this extravagant 2 week long meeting in a pavilion cost Henry's treasury £15,000
nothing was actually achieved in diplomatic terms and it lost appeal to Henry when he lost to Francis in a wrestling match
English armies invaded France in 1522 and 1523, gaining little and proved very costly, with parliament reluctant to grant extraordinary revenue necessary to cover the costs
Treaty of Amiens 1527 was forced by Henry's weak position after the failure to resolve his 'Great Matter' so he formed an anti-imperial alliance with the French
Henry then made a fragile alliance with the French (1525 League of Cognac) so they could put pressure on the emperor but Francis began to seek a marriage of his son Henry to the Pope's niece, Catherine, pushing Henry into the break with Rome
horrified Catholic powers but Charles and Francis frequently fighting securing his position, as well as the execution of Anne Boleyn and marriage to Anne of Cleves
Henry himself led an army into France in 1544, confining himself to the vicinity of Calais, knowing an attempt to March on Paris would be unsuccessful
unsuccessfully besieged Montreal but captured Boulogne before Francis made a peace with the emperor
Francis sent troops into Scotland
Henry's flagship, Mary Rose, sank in the Solent
the French failed to recapture Boulogne and an invasion of northern England supporting the Scots never materialised
peace was agreed in 1546, mainly due to a mutual lack of funds as Henry had to sell much of Crown estate, borrow large sums and debase the coinage